What to Wear for Outdoor swimming

It‘s important that you wear the right gear for outdoor swimming.

That means a brightly-coloured swimming cap, some good swimming goggles and for those not used to cold water, a well-fitting wetsuit.

A bright swimming cap will improve your visibility in the water.

While you will receive one in your Great Swim Event Pack, this will only arrive around two weeks before the event.

So, while you are training for your event, you need to invest in a good swimming cap that will enable you to be seen by other water users and from the bank.

Googles and Swim Masks

Open water can be cloudy, so a pair of good swimming goggles will make you more comfortable in the water and also help you to see where you are going.

Remember, there are no lanes and walls in open water to help you maintain a straight course. That’s why a pair of good goggles is vital.

It is important that your goggles or mask fit correctly and are in good order. If they are badly scratched or are simply too old, then problems of fogging up and leaking will ruin your swim.
Goggles vary greatly in styles and are also available in different sizes. What best suits you depends largely on the shape of your face. Comfort is paramount.
Try on as many pairs as possible before choosing. Choose the pair that feels most comfortable and gives a good seal.
All good goggles and swim masks are treated on the inside of the lenses with an anti-fog coating. This coating is not permanent and will eventually wear off.
Anti-fog drops are available should you find that your goggles begin to fog up after some months of use.
Anti-fog drops are swirled around in the goggles or mask and then rinsed out thoroughly prior to each swim to provide a temporary anti-fogging solution.

Wetsuits

A wetsuit will almost certainly make you feel more comfortable in open water, especially if the water is chilly. Wetsuits are compulsory in Great Swim events when the water temperature drops below 15c. (Wetsuits are compulsory for the British Gas Great London Swim). Above that temperature you may find that you are comfortable to swim without a wetsuit, although you should also consider the additional benefits of a wetsuit, such as extra buoyancy and a more streamlined swim.

Wetsuits vary in thickness and in styles. Most wetsuits can be worn for swimming outdoors, however ‘swimming specific’ wetsuits, by design, better facilitate swimming ‘actions’.
For a Great Swim event it is recommended that you wear a well fitting, specific wetsuit, i.e. those designed for triathlons
These are usually made from a flexible neoprene that allows you to swim normally whilst helping to insulate the body against the cold water.
Wetsuit styles vary from full-length suits to wetsuits with short legs and arms, to wetsuits with long legs and no arms. They also vary widely in thickness. The thicker the wetsuit, the more buoyant and, of course, warmer.
The most important thing is that whatever wetsuit you decide to wear it fits well.
It should be snug when you put in on, so the water is trapped next to your body to warm you up. It should not be loose fitting, so the water flows through it, as this will not warm you up and could restrict your swimming.
If you are wearing a wetsuit; try it out before event day, even if this is in the swimming pool.
Trunks should be worn underneath your wetsuit.
Neoprene ‘booties’ and gloves can be worn if the water is excessively cold. These however, can hamper performance as they reduce a swimmers ‘feel’ of the water and feel bulky.
Neoprene hoods are a good idea when the water is very cold.

Great Swim has linked up with Tri-Store to offer fantastic rental rates.

See the Wetsuit Hire & Equipment section for more details.

Training aids

Various training aids are available to help swimmers improve on their technique and stamina.

For safety reasons training aids are NOT allowed in a Great Swim event.

Kick Boards: are very useful when training in a pool. By isolating the legs, swimmers focus on the exercising the legs only.
Pull Buoys: are placed between the legs to provide buoyancy and to minimise the use of the legs. This allows swimmers to concentrate on their arm technique without having to kick hard to ensure their legs don’t sink.
Hand Paddles: add further resistance to the stroke pull. Hand paddles put additional strain on the shoulders and need to be used sparingly at first. They may also not be allowed in some public swimming pool sessions.
Neoprene Fitness gloves: serve the same purpose as hand paddles. However, because they are soft and allow the hand to bend, are more forgiving on the shoulders.

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